International powers raise USD 150 million for grain from Ukraine: we look at which countries contributed

At the International Summit on Food Security, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke about the food crisis caused by Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine:

“Russian troops surrounded Ukrainian ports. They blocked the export of our food. They put the world on the brink of starvation. They provoked a food crisis. The rapid increase in the price of products undermines the well-being of ordinary people, the well-being of millions of families, internal stability and regional security. Mass protests due to rising food prices, on  fertilizers, fuel threaten many countries and many societies. We must prevent the further spread of this crisis and this global challenge,” Zelenskyy said.

During the summit, the President of Ukraine outlined the goal of the Grain from Ukraine humanitarian program - to send 60 ships with Ukrainian agricultural products to the countries where the food crisis is most acute: to Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Congo, Kenya, and Yemen.

“Each ship with grain sent from Ukraine within the framework of the initiative will meet the food needs of an average of 90,000 people. In turn, 60 ships will provide a guarantee of food security for a million people a year,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.

So, on November 26, on the first day of the International Summit on Food Security, USD 150 million was collected from more than 20 participating countries and the EU for the initiative to send grain from Ukraine to African countries.

It is known that Belgium was the first to join the initiative, according to the president, it “joined by providing funding for the implementation of humanitarian food supplies specifically for countries that are very difficult, that may come face to face with such a challenge as hunger.”

Germany will contribute EUR 15 million to Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Grain from Ukraine initiative, and Canada will allocate another USD 23 million for grain exports. Poland also joined, which will attract EUR 20 million. British Foreign Minister James Cleverley announced that the country provides GBP 5 million to help transport grain from Ukraine to countries at risk of famine. Austria did the same, the spokesman of the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that EUR 3.8 million had been raised for the program. Sweden will provide SEK 100 million, which amounts to about USD 4.2 million. Ursula von der Leyen said that the European Commission will pay for the transportation of 40,000 tons of Ukrainian grain.